Expat Advice: Financial Issues in Merida, Mexico

What is the name of the city or town that you are reporting on?

Merida

Which banks do you use? If you have a local account, which bank do you use? How do you like it? Do you also have an account in your home country? Which bank? Do they charge for ATM withdrawals? Do they charge a lot for international wire transfers? How has it been working with them from abroad? Do you use a special international wire transfer service? Do you use an online bank? If so, tell us about them.

As far as I know, there is no "expat-focused" bank here. Banamex is owned by Citibank, and many of the other banks are owned by US banks. We have accounts at Banamex and Inbursa (a Mexican bank owned by Carlos Slim, the richest man in Mexico and the owner of Telmex, among other things). We used to have an account at Scotiabank but found them too old-fashioned and slow. Even so, Banamex's online banking can be terrifically confusing. But at least its there!

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What advice would you offer others about banking as an expat in your country? What do you wish you had known about banking when you first arrived?

Bring someone who speaks Spanish with you, if you don't. Also, most real banking (wire transfers, money exchange, etc.) is done in the morning. I've found lots of things I can't do after 1 pm, so I always bank in the morning.

What sort of challenges or frustrations have you encountered as an investor living overseas? Please describe.

Haven't tried investing directly here, other than in savings accounts. Which pay a higher interest rate than US accounts, supposedly because of the increased risk of the peso.

What advice was particularly helpful to you in managing your finances? What advice would you give? Any other thoughts?

Get an Mexican accountant. Try to find one used by other expats who speaks some English. This has been a lifesaver. Also, if you are going to buy a house, you'll need a "notario" (a special kind of lawyer). Same advice applies there.

Do you do your own taxes, use a local firm, an expat-oriented firm or does your employer handle this for you (i.e. via an corporate tax firm)?

We use an accountant to do our Mexican taxes. They have to be filed monthly here, which is certainly more than we can handle, even if we could understand the process (which we dont). The good news is that you dont have to do all that scrambling at the end of the year.

What advice could you offer others about doing your taxes as an expat?

Find a good accountant.